Allie Caughman

Bio

I am a PhD student in the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California, Santa Barbara advised by Steve Gaines and Darcy Bradley.

During my time in the Gaines Lab, I am interested in the intersection of marine animal movement ecology, conservation, and data science. I hope to further the understanding of how animals move in response to climate change and other pressures in order to best direct conservation efforts for important species and habitats. I plan to leverage my existing programming skills to develop simulation models to answer a broach range of theoretical questions about species movement and habitat choice. Then, I hope to leverage empirical data to test and improve the theoretical models and translate that into effective marine conservation solutions. Currently, I am interested in how evolutionary changes and behavioral plasticity may affect species movement and dispersal behavior. I am currently supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellows Program.

I spend most of my free time rock climbing at the Santa Barbara Rock Gym in downtown Santa Barbara. I also enjoy hiking, kayaking, SCUBA Diving and other outdoor activities!

Education

B.S. Biology | Georgia Institute of Technology | 2016 - 2020

M.A. Statistics (Data Science) | University of California, Santa Barbara | 2021 - 2023 (expected)

Ph.D. Environmental Science and Management | University of California, Santa Barbara | 2021 - 2026 (expected)

Contact

Email: acaughman@bren.ucsb.edu

Allie Caughman

Bio

I am a PhD student in the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California, Santa Barbara advised by Steve Gaines and Darcy Bradley.

During my time in the Gaines Lab, I am interested in the intersection of marine animal movement ecology, conservation, and data science. I hope to further the understanding of how animals move in response to climate change and other pressures in order to best direct conservation efforts for important species and habitats. I plan to leverage my existing programming skills to develop simulation models to answer a broach range of theoretical questions about species movement and habitat choice. Then, I hope to leverage empirical data to test and improve the theoretical models and translate that into effective marine conservation solutions. Currently, I am interested in how evolutionary changes and behavioral plasticity may affect species movement and dispersal behavior. I am currently supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellows Program.

I spend most of my free time rock climbing at the Santa Barbara Rock Gym in downtown Santa Barbara. I also enjoy hiking, kayaking, SCUBA Diving and other outdoor activities!

Education

B.S. Biology | Georgia Institute of Technology | 2016 - 2020

M.A. Statistics (Data Science) | University of California, Santa Barbara | 2021 - 2023 (expected)

Ph.D. Environmental Science and Management | University of California, Santa Barbara | 2021 - 2026 (expected)

Contact

Email: acaughman@bren.ucsb.edu